Writing my last ink review (on Montblanc ‘The Beatles’ Psychedelic Purple, which I love) inspired me to start a short series of reviews on my latest favourite inks. I say ‘latest’ favourites because it seems that every time I order a batch of ink samples I fall in love with another ink, and that could be a brand new release or an ink that the fountain pen community has been raving about for ages but that I haven’t quite got round to trying out yet (Pilot Iroshizuku Kon Peki being one example… yes, yes, I know! *hangs head in shame*).
So, on to my thoughts on Diamine Arctic Blue. Arctic Blue is from the Shimmertastic range of inks by the wonderful UK manufacturer Diamine. Arctic Blue was released in Diamine’s most recent range of shimmery inks and I ordered my bottle from Pure Pens in the UK. As always, I should add that I purchased this ink myself and that I am in no way affiliated to Diamine or any other manufacturer or retailer. I’m just a happy consumer and fountain pen ink obsessive!
Arctic blue is a medium blue / dark turquoise colour that has it all: shimmer, sheen and shading. It is pretty stunning! I am using it in my Twsbi Eco with a broad nib, and the ink flows beautifully and is well-saturated. It is a juicy, wet ink that shows plenty of shading. The shimmer is silver and is reasonably consistently spread throughout a writing sample. If I have left the pen sitting for a while I do have to give it a swirl before writing as the shimmer settles in the barrel of the pen, but only a gentle swirl is needed to disperse it.
The shimmer is visible below:
As the ink dries, it reveals a gorgeous red sheen that I wasn’t expecting to see, and it shows what I consider to be just the right amount of sheen. The sheen is clearly noticeable on Rhodia paper, but it isn’t overwhelming. When I first saw that combination of beautiful colour with silver shimmer, stunning shading and gorgeous sheen, I was smitten.
Shading and sheen visible in the photos below:
In the pictures below, you can see the sheen developing as the ink dries.
Comparison with the closest colours that I have. Diamine Arctic Blue looks a little more green than Robert Oster Blue Water Ice, but not as green as Robert Oster Fire and Ice.
I have had this ink in my pen for a few weeks and I have not cleaned the pen out yet, so I can’t comment conclusively on that aspect, but I don’t foresee that cleaning will present any problems. I have left the pen unused for several days at a time and have had no issues with clogging or hard starts – so far it seems to be a really well-behaved ink and definitely one of my latest favourites.
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